We are excited to announce Miriam Barr will be the National Poetry Day Coordinator for 2014. Miriam Barr is an Auckland-based poet from the Far North with a background in psychology and community development.

Her poems have been published in Landfall, Takahe, Brief, Poetry NZ, JAAM, 4th Floor, Blackmail Press, Enamel, Wild Goose Poetry Review (USA), Potroast and REM Magazine. She has been a Poetry Idol slam champion (2007), creative director of The Literatti, a Poetry Live coordinator and editor of Side Stream, a bi-monthly poetry zine that was distributed for free in unexpected places by a network of poets from Kaitaia to Berlin.

She has previously organised a diverse range of poetry events including NZ’s first Poetry Brothel, multimedia collaborations, guerrilla-style chalking events, and standard poetry readings where anyone can share, taking poetry to bars, cafes, theatres, festival tents and street corners from Whangarei to Dunedin.

Miriam is replacing Siobhan Harvey. We thank Siobhan Harvey for her excellent performance and long service in this role, which she held for nine years.